Plans for opt-out carbon offset charge revealed
The Government is considering introducing an opt-out carbon offset charge for UK flyers.
Under the scheme, the charge will automatically be added to the cost of a ticket, but customers could choose not to pay by opting out.
Tick-box or opt-in schemes are used by a number of airlines, but take up has been limited and the Department for Transport (DfT) has been looking at ways to maximise contributions ‘particularly from specific groups such as business travellers’.
The DfT said: "One way to increase uptake could be to follow an opt-out rather than opt-in model, under which the cost of offsetting carbon emissions would be automatically included for consumers, unless they selected not to pay to offset their emissions."
The new plans could see just under £30 added to a flight between London and New York, falling to half that for the most fuel-efficient airlines, according to The Times.
A journey between London and Madrid could rise by about £5, it added.
Similar measures could also be applied to coaches, trains and ferries.
The plans were published last week in a ‘call for evidence’ paper by the DfT, which is looking at how to make it easier for consumers to pay to reduce their carbon footprint when travelling.
Lisa
Lisa joined Travel Weekly nearly 25 years ago as technology reporter and then sailed around the world for a couple of years as cruise correspondent, before becoming deputy editor. Now freelance, Lisa writes for various print and web publications, edits Corporate Traveller’s client magazine, Gateway, and works on the acclaimed Remembering Wildlife series of photography books, which raise awareness of nature’s most at-risk species and helps to fund their protection.
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